Tuesday, 6 December 2011

In a major foreign
policy announcement, timed for the anniversary of adoption of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the White House has issued a memorandum (copy below) ordering all government agencies to promote LGBT rights internationally.

Engage International Organizations in the fight against LGBT discrimination.

The
use of aid ('foreign assistance') as a factor in promoting LGBT rights
has recently come into focus with a major media storm in many countries
following reports of the UK government withholding aid to countries criminalizing homosexuality.

The UK has clarified that it is not reducing but will consider redirecting aid from government budgets to other routes. It has also clarified that aid policy has four 'pillars', one of which is human rights and that includes LGBT rights.

Exactly how the UK will apply its policy remains unclear, however it
is known to have used 'aid conditionality' in attempts to pressure
Uganda to withdraw its 'Kill gays' bill and criminalisation of
lesbianism in Malawi was a minor factor in a recent aid redirection,
alongside a serious backsliding on human rights in that country.

The Obama memorandum also does not clarify how it will 'leverage' aid.

The White House said:

The Administration’s dedication to LGBT
rights does not stop at our borders, as the President made clear at the
United Nations in September of this year when he said: “no country
should deny people their rights because of who they love, which is why
we must stand up for the rights of gays and lesbians everywhere.”

Following an interagency process coordinated by the National
Security Staff, this memorandum directs the first-ever U.S. government
strategy dedicated to combating human rights abuses against LGBT persons
abroad. Today’s memorandum applies to the Departments of State, the
Treasury, Defense, Justice, Agriculture, Commerce, Health and Human
Services, Homeland Security, the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID), the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the
Export-Import Bank, the United States Trade Representative, and such
other agencies as the President may designate.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke on the policy in Geneva,
today, 6 December. She announced a new 'Global Equality Fund', which
will be a 'public-private' partnership and to which the State Department
is contributing $3m. Amongst the work of this fund, it will:

It specifically
mentions support for Sierra Leonean activists, who have recently reported coming under attack following a media appearance. It also
mentions that "where necessary" the Fund will support relocation of key
activists.

In a briefing [PDF], the State Department laid out its ongoing work on LGBT asylum seekers and refugees. It said:

The Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) is working
to improve the security of LGBT refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants
by implementing a comprehensive LGBT refugee protection strategy
developed in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, the
Department of Health and Human Services, the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR) and NGOs.

Progress includes additional funding to UNHCR in places such as
Turkey to help with resettlement of LGBT refugees, training for staff
working on refugee protection, and the expansion of NGO guidelines to
ensure partners know that LGBT refugees and asylum seekers are a
priority population of concern.

PRM is also funding new programs in this area, including research to
develop best practices for serving LGBT refugees in urban areas and a
pilot initiative in Costa Rica on the needs of LGBT migrants.